TomJ
"Elite" 😏
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Hey everyone, after a conversation in the shoutbox I checked the forum and couldnt find a comprehensive guide to bloodwork, so im deciding to write my own so that there is something to easily reference people to when they have questions regarding ordering, getting, or interpreting bloodwork.
There are certainly gaps in my knowledge when it comes to bloodwork interpretation on more niche cases and I am hoping that others will add their knowledge to this thread or correct me if I write something incorrect, I will edit the post to include as much of that info as i can.
Why do we get bloodwork?
We, as recreational PED users, should be getting bloodwork regularly to monitor our health and specific markers to ensure we are being as responsible and minimizing our health risks.
Specifically pre cycle bloodwork is used for a reference baseline, to compare to later, as well as to ensure there that you are in good enough health such that a cycle does not pose any unnecessary risk to you.
Mid cycle bloodwork is used to confirm that your testosterone is authentic, check your aromatization rate and estradiol to dial in AI dosage, and to confirm that your health markers are still in good order to continue your blast/cycle.
post cycle bloodwork is used to assess the success of your PCT protocol (if you are not on TRT or blasting and cruising), check the damage/stress done from your cycle, and to see how well you tolerated your cycle in its totality.
When do we get bloodwork?
There are four common times/periods that we commonly get bloodwork done. In short, we get bloodwork whenever we introduce changes to see how those changes have effected our health.
Pre, Mid, Post, and Between cycles
Pre Cycle - This is done immediately before beginning a cycle to establish a baseline and to check that you are in good health before starting your cycle
Mid Cycle - Mid cycle bloodwork is done at some point during your cycle after serum levels have stabilized, generally speaking, this is 4-5 weeks into your cycle for the most common medium/long esters (cypionate, enanthate, decanoate ect). For those who are unsure how they aromatize (the process of converting testosterone to estrogen) this bloodwork is used to see how well a particular dose of testosterone is tolerated and if and what dose of an AI is needed for that individual (this is HIGHLY individual, and without this bloodwork it is impossible to dial in an AI dosage accurately). For those that are unsure of the authenticity of their Test product this bloodwork can also be used to show if the product is real or not and will give you a good idea if it is under dosed or not for most people.
Post Cycle - Regardless if an individual cruises/trt or pcts, post cycle bloodwork is arguably the most important, in conjunction to baseline precycle bloodwork. This bloodwork is done after completing your PCT protocol, or after your serum levels have returned to normal TRT/Cruise levels. This is to check lipids, liver stress, blood markers, ect to see how damaging/stressful your cycle has been.
Between Cycles - This bloodwork is generally excessive, most people skip this, but is still important for those that want to be sure about their health or those that had concerning results from their post cycle bloodwork. This set of bloodwork is done generally 2-3 months after post cycle bloods if doing a longer downtime between cycles. The purpose of this set is to access recovery of certain markers, this is somewhat redundant with precycle bloodwork for those that are doing shorter downtimes.
How/Where Do We Get Bloodwork
Some people can get limited bloodwork ordered through their doctor, but most individuals prefer to order their tests privately.
These are two of the common websites to order tests through
What Do I Get Tested?
I use jasonhealth, so I will use their test names and terminology for this section, privatemdlabs offers much of the same testing, but bundles them differently under some different names.
All Relevant Tests/Terminology
I Have X Marker Come Back High/Low, What Does This Mean?
This is of course, not a complete list of all issues that can be discovered in bloodwork, but outlines the most common ones. This should not be taken as medical advice, if you are having issues please seek the treatment and advice of a medical professional, this information is for educational purposes only.
There are certainly gaps in my knowledge when it comes to bloodwork interpretation on more niche cases and I am hoping that others will add their knowledge to this thread or correct me if I write something incorrect, I will edit the post to include as much of that info as i can.
Why do we get bloodwork?
We, as recreational PED users, should be getting bloodwork regularly to monitor our health and specific markers to ensure we are being as responsible and minimizing our health risks.
Specifically pre cycle bloodwork is used for a reference baseline, to compare to later, as well as to ensure there that you are in good enough health such that a cycle does not pose any unnecessary risk to you.
Mid cycle bloodwork is used to confirm that your testosterone is authentic, check your aromatization rate and estradiol to dial in AI dosage, and to confirm that your health markers are still in good order to continue your blast/cycle.
post cycle bloodwork is used to assess the success of your PCT protocol (if you are not on TRT or blasting and cruising), check the damage/stress done from your cycle, and to see how well you tolerated your cycle in its totality.
When do we get bloodwork?
There are four common times/periods that we commonly get bloodwork done. In short, we get bloodwork whenever we introduce changes to see how those changes have effected our health.
Pre, Mid, Post, and Between cycles
Pre Cycle - This is done immediately before beginning a cycle to establish a baseline and to check that you are in good health before starting your cycle
Mid Cycle - Mid cycle bloodwork is done at some point during your cycle after serum levels have stabilized, generally speaking, this is 4-5 weeks into your cycle for the most common medium/long esters (cypionate, enanthate, decanoate ect). For those who are unsure how they aromatize (the process of converting testosterone to estrogen) this bloodwork is used to see how well a particular dose of testosterone is tolerated and if and what dose of an AI is needed for that individual (this is HIGHLY individual, and without this bloodwork it is impossible to dial in an AI dosage accurately). For those that are unsure of the authenticity of their Test product this bloodwork can also be used to show if the product is real or not and will give you a good idea if it is under dosed or not for most people.
Post Cycle - Regardless if an individual cruises/trt or pcts, post cycle bloodwork is arguably the most important, in conjunction to baseline precycle bloodwork. This bloodwork is done after completing your PCT protocol, or after your serum levels have returned to normal TRT/Cruise levels. This is to check lipids, liver stress, blood markers, ect to see how damaging/stressful your cycle has been.
Between Cycles - This bloodwork is generally excessive, most people skip this, but is still important for those that want to be sure about their health or those that had concerning results from their post cycle bloodwork. This set of bloodwork is done generally 2-3 months after post cycle bloods if doing a longer downtime between cycles. The purpose of this set is to access recovery of certain markers, this is somewhat redundant with precycle bloodwork for those that are doing shorter downtimes.
How/Where Do We Get Bloodwork
Some people can get limited bloodwork ordered through their doctor, but most individuals prefer to order their tests privately.
These are two of the common websites to order tests through
- https://www.jasonhealth.com/ (my personal preference)
-
Fast Blood Lab Tests. No Doctor Visit. Blood Testing Near You | Private MD Labs
Get blood lab testing near you - no doctor visit needed. Over 100 blood tests online, pick a lab near you, our docs write the prescriptions & you get results by email & SMS! Fast, easy and confidential blood tests near you.
www.privatemdlabs.com
What Do I Get Tested?
I use jasonhealth, so I will use their test names and terminology for this section, privatemdlabs offers much of the same testing, but bundles them differently under some different names.
All Relevant Tests/Terminology
- CMP - Comprehensive Metabolic Panel. Cheap test to get most basic health markers checked. Should always be included since its so cheap and covers a wide array of markers
- CBC - Comprehensive Blood Panel. Another dirt cheap test for detailed blood markers such as WBC and hematocrit. Should always be included
- Lipids - checks cholesterol levels. Cheap. Should always be included
- TSH - Basic thyroid test. cheap. Should be done intermittently (I include this every other set of bloodwork, again, its cheap)
- CRP - C-Reactive Protein. Medium cost. Inflammation test/marker. Should be done pre-cycle for your first baseline, then intermittently. (I include this in every other set of bloodwork)
- PSA - Prostate test. medium cost. Should be done once a year, at initial baseline, and post cycle if using 19-nors (tren, nandrolone, ect)
- Testosterone - self explanatory, serum testosterone test. Pricy cost. Should be done during initial baseline, mid cycle if needed to confirm product authenticity, and post cycle to access PCT successfulness. If you know your products authenticity or are not pcting you can skip this test most of the time since youll be unnaturally elevated anyway. The cheaper version (just Testosterone; Total) can be used if all you are concerned about is product authenticity.
- Cortisol - Self explanatory. tests cortisol levels. Medium cost. Not that necessary of a test in general but I like including it for baselines, and once a year.
- Estradiol - Serum Estrogen Test. Medium Cost. Should be included in baseline, and mid cycle to access aromatization rate and to dial in AI dosage (if needed)
- FSH/LH - Follicle stimulating hormone, and luteinizing hormone test. Medium Cost. Should be included in baseline and Post Cycle to access PCT effectiveness. These are the primary markers we try to bring back to baseline by PCTing, these are the markers that are reduced when we refer to being "shut down" or "suppressed" and are the important markers to indicate natural testosterone production. Not needed for those that B/C or TRT as the result will be undetectable for most people.
- Prolactin - Prolactin Serum Test. Medium Cost. Female hormone that may have some impact on gynoclemastia in conjunction with estradiol, should be included in baseline. 19--Nors can elevate this marker for some people, and should be checked either mid or post cycle if using 19 nors.
- Hepatic Function Panel - Liver Function test. Cheap. Some overlap with CMP with some more detailed markers tested. Should always be included.
I Have X Marker Come Back High/Low, What Does This Mean?
- High Urea nitrogen(bun)/Creatinine/EGFR
- Could indicate kidney damage/failure however gets elevated from intense training. If highly elevated, take some time off from training and retest. slightly elevated creatinine is generally not something to be overly concerned about
- Albumin/Globulin low/high
- Indicates protein levels in your blood. Low could be from dietary issues (not enough protein) or from liver/kidney issues. High is typically an indicator of dehydration, and that your water intake is not sufficient.
- AST/ALT
- Liver stress markers. Commonly elevated from oral use. Some elevation is expected with oral use and can be minimized/limited with NAC/Tudca supplementation. Excessive elevation indicates severe liver stress and all orals should be ceased and you should retest the following month.
- Estradiol
- Estrogen Level Marker. Commonly elevated when on cycle due to aromatization, everyone aromatizes at a different rate and everyone has a different tolerance to high estrogen levels. Overly elevated levels indicates your test dose is too high or your AI dose is too low and can cause the typical side effects associated with steroid use. (acne, blood preasure, oily skin, gyno, ect) Estrogen is necessary for regular bodily function and low estrogen will make you feel like shit, if your estrogen comes back well bellow the reference range than your AI dose is far too high.
- CRP
- Systemic inflammation indicator. If this marker is elevated it means something is causing general inflammation in your body. This could indicate infection or that your body doesnt particularly like/is mildly allergic to the particular carrier oil your products are in.
- Prolactin
- High prolactin can potentially cause high estrogen-like symptoms and gyno, as well as cause a myriad of sexual function issues, what is called "Deca Dick" is likely caused by elevated prolactin most of the time. This marker is commonly elevated due to 19-nor use and can be managed with over the counter supplements like P5P or with medication like cabergoline.
- Lipids (Cholesterol/HDL/LDL
- These markers are routinely thrown out of whack from steroid use, in a dose specific manner. HDL is commonly referred to as "Good cholesterol", LDL is commonly referred to as "Bad Cholesterol". PCT and cruise periods are important to give your body a break and let these levels normalize. These markers can be mitigated through diet and supplementation of healthy fats like fish oil. Extended periods of time with these markers out of whack can lead to heart disease and other serious issues, if these markers are still poor at pre-cycle bloodwork, then you should not proceed with your cycle until you are in better health.
This is of course, not a complete list of all issues that can be discovered in bloodwork, but outlines the most common ones. This should not be taken as medical advice, if you are having issues please seek the treatment and advice of a medical professional, this information is for educational purposes only.
